The Most Important
by MamzelleHermy
Summary: [SPOILERS FOR EPISODE 6] Continuation of "Detained" - What could happen after that very last scene.
1. Chapter 1

_**Hi everyone Classmates and curious followers,**_

 ** _for the later, I know, I know, this is definitely what you were expecting but I hope you will still find interest in this modest story!_**

 ** _For my fellow Classmates, well, what to say. I am feeling partly excited, partly worried. I hope you will like this story! I couldn't help myself, this story just hit me and demanded to be written. I just love Charlie and Matteusz and their relationship so very much! I don't think I have ever loved any TV couple so much!_**

 ** _For the record, this is an un-Beta'ed version because I didn't want to bother my Beta (and because I am not sure she watches the show) so please, please, be kind with my non-native self!_**

 ** _Enjoy!_**

* * *

 **The most important**

Charlie couldn't stop staring at Miss Quill. How did she manage to get rid of the Ahn and still be alive? It was impossible.

"What are you going to do now?" He asked her, letting go of the bloody bag, disgusted.

She could basically do everything now. His mind flashed back to his first meeting with her back on Rhodia. When she tried to kill him and his whole family. He knew only too well how dangerous she was in reality.

 _"You treat her like your slave!"_

Tanya's accusation was still ringing clearly in his mind. Her disgust with him clear even in memory.

Maybe he did. But she deserved it. That was one of the few sure he was sure of in his life. The other just couldn't understand that. They haven't seen what she could do.

He repressed the need to take a step backward when Miss Quill's cold eyes glared at him. The red scar marring her left eyes making her look every bit like the fierce warrior she was.

He quickly eyed the door, trying to determine if he could reach it before she decided to take her revenge on him.

But, of course, he wouldn't really flee, he was a Prince after all. And he also was only too aware of Matteusz presence next to him. He couldn't let his boyfriend alone with her. And he couldn't communicate an exit plan without Quill knowing.

"Answer me!" He called out, voice angry, trying and failing to think of a way to escape the room.

"I do not have to answer to you anymore little prince!" Miss Quill finally reacted, standing up in an angry move, her hand clutching her newly repaired gun. "But as you are so demanding and I am feeling generous, I'm going to tell you."

She interrupted herself while she slowly walked around her desk, heels cliquing on the floor ominously.

"I am going to make you take revenge for our people. I am going to make you kill the Shadow kin."

Charlie repressed a snort.

"You know I won't do it." He answered.

He had already killed one person today and he was not keen on repeating the experience any time soon. He was feeling enough guilt and shame over it to last a lifetime. He didn't want to imagine what it would be like after he committed a double genocide.

"I beg to differ."

Miss Quill raised her gun towards him, finger ready to shoot him.

He smirked.

"You think I'm afraid to die?" He asked her, not even raising his hands in surrender.

Her answering evil smile froze the blood in his veins.

"No. I don't. But you forget one thing little Prince. We've lived together for months now. I know how to hurt you. I know how to make you obey."

The rhodian frowned.

"Now, be a good boy and let's go and finally use this bloody cabinet to kill those monsters once and for all."

Charlie didn't move.

"Well, I kind of hoped you would say that."

And with that she turned her gun to his right. Charlie didn't have to turn to know she was aiming it at Matteusz. Air froze in his lungs as another type of panic gripped him.

"Don't do that!" He cried out, making a move to step forward.

Quill only raised her gun higher.

"I told you. You have no orders to give me anymore."

She fired the gun before he had even time to blink. It was only instinct and quick reflexes that allowed him to jump sideways fast enough to knock into his boyfriend.

Time seemed to slow as he heard Matteusz gasp of surprise as he went tumbling down and felt the burn of the fire blast on his left side.

He hit the floor with a loud thump and a cry.

Pain flared through his body, making his mind fuzzy. Automatically his left hand went to the wound as if hoping to stop the fire from spreading. It only uselessly came in contact with the sticky wetness of blood.

"Charlie!" Matteusz' panicked cry made time resume and he chocked on his next intake of breathe.

He opened his eyes in time to watch his boyfriend kneel over him, hands hovering over his body, afraid to hurt him.

Despite everything, it made the rhodian smile.

But then he remembered where he was and what was happening and hastily tried to scramble up. He had to protect Matteusz.

"Quill." He breathed out with a painful groan as his boyfriend stopped him from moving.

"She ran out. Don't move. You need hospital."

"No. No. The cabinet. We have to get it."

Charlie tried to struggle up again but he could feel it was useless. His strength was waning and his mind kept wandering.

He was jerked back to himself when Matteusz pushed on his side. It felt like being stabbed. And yes, he knew how that felt.

He looked down to see his boyfriend's hands pressing his shirt against his bloody wound.

"Matteusz…" He said, reaching out to clench his own hands around the familiar forearm. "Please. We… We have to… Get to it before her…"

The other boy shook his head. Charlie hated to see the tears in his eyes and his panicked expression. He wanted to reach out and comfort him.

He couldn't. Because he was the one responsible of it.

Guilt swallowed him for a moment, making his heart stutter.

"Please."

His mind was disjointed and he struggled to keep his line of thoughts.

It seemed, however, that his desperation was clearly visible to his boyfriend.

"Fine. Fine. I'll… I'll call the others." His accent was even more pronounced, his voice raspy for the wrong reason.

Charlie closed his eyes as he listened to Matteusz rummage through his bag for his phone.

"Hey! Don't fall asleep on me!" The cry was accompanied by a press on his wound.

"I'm… Not…" It was getting more difficult to speak.

Charlie wondered why he wasn't more afraid of what was probably going to be his death.

In his mind, he was back on Rhodia, back on his home. It felt good. So good.

He observed the familiar, comforting, scenery, the warm colors of the landscape. He thought for a moment he could feel the breath of the south wind carrying the smell of the sea.

He looked at his side and found it empty. Something was missing.

Not something. Someone. Someone important.

The most important person in his life.

"Hey! Hey! Charlie! Charlie!"

He groaned as he was shaken from his thoughts. His eyes opened with difficulty.

"I… I love you..." He breathed out with as much strength as he could muster. If he was dying then this was the most important thing he had to say. "I love you… So much…"

"I know. I know. I love you too." Matteusz' voice was wet with his tears.

Charlie felt a hand stroke his hair. It was nice. It was comforting. It reminded him of home and happiness.

An unbidden tear fell from his eye.

"We have to get you to hospital."

"We can't… Alien."

"You can't die!"

"It's… Okay… Matteusz." He squeezed the arm he just noticed he was still holding.

"No… No it's not… I need you."

Charlie wished again he could comfort his boyfriend. Watching him suffering was more painful than any physical wound anyone could inflict him.

"You don't." He whispered.

And it was true. Matteusz was strong and courageous. Far more than he knew.

He had had to be.

He had fought against his parent's prejudice. Against whispers and rumours.

He had fought against the loneliness of being a foreigner. All alone.

And what had Charlie done while his people were attacked in front of his very eyes? Nothing. He had fled like the coward he was.

Once again, he didn't realize that his consciousness had left until he was shaken awake by a cry of his name.

It didn't sound like Matteusz.

He opened his eyes by a slit in time to watch Tanya fall on her knees next to him. He was surprised to see tears falling down her face too. Did it mean she cared about him?

It was a nice thought.

"We have to take him to the hospital!" She cried out, speaking to Matteusz.

The boy shook his head.

"He says we can't. Because he's an alien."

"Nonsense!" She protested before interrupting herself to think about it. She bit her lower lip.

"My mum is a nurse. We can take him to her."

Charlie wanted to point out that he had endangered them and their families enough and that they should just let it go but he simply couldn't find the strength to talk anymore.

"You sure?" Matteusz asked. He was clearly trying to hide the hope in his voice. It didn't work very well. Especially for Charlie.

Tanya nodded sharply.

"I'll call Ram and tell him to meet us outside. You can handle Charlie?"

"Of course."

"Matteusz…" The prince managed to say as Tanya left and his boyfriend shifted, clearly intending to carry him.

"Shut up love. You are not dying on me. You understand?"

Charlie could safely say he had never heard the boy in front of him speak like that. He clamped his mouth shut and just stared in his boyfriend's brown eyes.

He didn't know how long they stayed like this, eyes locked as the world faded against the strength of their connection.

"Good. Now brace yourself. You are going to be fine."

The rhodian prince really tried to keep his hold on consciousness but the moment Matteusz moved him pained flared up so bright that everything just faded to black before he had even the time to cry out.

* * *

"You're sure he's going to be alright?"

"Yes. My mum says he needs rest but the IV kept his fluids up and they managed to close the wound soon enough to avoid permanent damage. There will be a scar though."

"I'm sure someone will find it sexy." The teasing tone was obviously meant to be a joke but Charlie could hear no laughs as he slowly began to regain feeling.

"Ram!" The gentle rebuke sounded less like he was under water and for that the rhodian prince was grateful.

However, he still felt like he was floating around in a peaceful sea. Just like he had been doing on Rhodia when he needed calm and quiet.

He didn't know for how long he floated like that. Lost between Earth and Rhodia. Consciousness and dream.

Snippets of conversations and memories mixed up but never enough to keep his attention for long as he drifted aimlessly.

And then, after an unknown time, he felt a shift operate as he began to regain feeling of his true body.

He expected to feel pain but was relieved to feel only numbness. He was… Agreeable.

Next, he felt the warmth of a hand around his and against his side. Familiar and safe. Like the small gentle caress of a thumb against his skin.

He focused on that and slowly began what felt like climbing his way back to consciousness. Like he had done to prove his worth as a prince on Rhodia.

After some time, smell began registering. A clean, unfamiliar scent of chemicals. He had never smelled anything like that and fought not to wrinkle his nose.

He must have made some kind of movement, however, because the comforting warmth at his side suddenly disappeared just like the anchoring movement against his hand.

Fear and loneliness spiked in his gut and he struggled to try to find it again.

His heart picked up speed.

He needed the warmth.

"Charlie? Charlie, it's okay, I'm here. I'm here."

Warmth reappeared against the side of his face as the stroking began again, this time in his hair.

His heartbeat slowed.

He was not alone.

He was not lost.

"Come on Charlie, wake up for me."

A sigh followed, warm breath caressing the side of his face.

"Please Charlie... I need you."

Like hit by lightening, his mind suddenly provided him with a name and memories. He fought even harder to wake up.

Matteusz needed him.

The most important person in his life needed him.

He couldn't let him down.

He wouldn't let another person he cared about down.

He forced his eyes to open.

They did so. Slowly. He had to squint at the bright light that hit his retinas, blurring his vision.

For a moment, he stared incomprehensively at the white unknown ceiling.

But then the sound of sniffle against his ear reminded him that he had something to do.

"Ma-Matteusz."

His voice was nothing more than a low, raspy croak but it was enough to make the boy next to him freeze before jerking up, his face appearing in Charlie's eyesight.

It made the corner of the prince's mouth lift a bit. Even with red-rimmed and dark-shadowed eyes he was still easily the most beautiful person Charlie had ever seen.

Matteusz blinked at him, looking amazed and then he grinned.

"Charlie? Oh god! You're alright! I was so worried! Vivian said you would be fine but you wasn't waking up and I was just so worried..."

The boy rambled on and on his accent getting so thick that Charlie's muddled mind struggled to make sense. Ultimately he just stopped trying and reached out to take hold of Matteusz' wrist, rubbing the warm skin there.

It effectively shut his boyfriend up with a snap of his mouth.

They just stared at each other, feelings too numerous to be talked about at the time. Relief, fear, pain, regret, guilt but, most of all, love.

The prince could see how deeply Matteusz had been affected in the exhaustion lines marring his face and the tension of his muscles. It made his heart ache. He had never wanted for this to happen.

Slowly, he shifted to the side making the other boy straightened.

"You shouldn't…"

"Come here." Charlie interrupted, his voice made slightly stronger by his determination.

Still, Matteusz hesitated, he looked back at the room's door but the prince didn't relent, tugging gently on the limb he still held. The human's shoulders sagged as he turned back. Slowly, he sat up on the edge of Charlie's bed before very carefully lying down. Charlie sighed contently as his boyfriend familiar warmth settled against him. He tugged Matteusz' arm across his chest, forcing the bigger boy closer.

He felt a kiss in his hair and inhaled deeply, the scent of chemical clean replace by manly musk.

He wanted to stay like that forever, feeling content and loved but his prince training began kicking in.

"Matteusz?" He asked, hating to break the peaceful silence.

His boyfriend just hummed, his hand beginning to caress his chest slowly.

"The Cabinet…" His voice caught as his mind kept going over what could happen if Quill got her hands on it.

She could take his whole people, his whole culture captive.

"Ram got it before coming to take us to the hospital. He hid it but wouldn't tell us where."

Charlie wanted to shake his head. So he had to trust Ram the golden boy with his whole past?

He guessed it was better than the alternative.

"Quill?"

He felt Matteusz tense again at the name.

"We haven't seen her since."

His tone was colder than Charlie ever heard. He thought his boyfriend could be pretty scary if he wanted.

He had a few other questions he wanted to ask but none felt important enough to break the quiet. He let himself float again, simply enjoying the feeling of his boyfriend holding him close.

Enjoying the knowledge that they were both alive. Alive and together.

Despite truth and violence.

Gradually, he felt Matteusz relax next to him, breathing deepening and slowing.

In turn, Charlie closed his eyes, letting his worries fade away, breathing into Matteusz scent more deeply.

He wondered how he got lucky enough to have found such a wonderful boyfriend.

He knew it was just a temporary fix and that soon he would have to find Quill again and stop her. And all the potential alien threats.

But, for now, he just wanted a bit of rest and comfort.

He fell asleep with a small smile on his face.

None of the boys noticed the door to Charlie's room open sometime later.

* * *

 ** _So... How did you like this? Do not hesitate to leave a little review ;)_**


	2. Chapter 2

**_Hello my fellow Classmates,_**

 ** _Yes, yes, I couldn't resist writing to you a companion piece to this story with Matteusz' POV. Because I love Matteusz. He is so great!_**

 ** _I hope you will like this part and this time it has even been corrected by my fantastic Beta!_**

 ** _Also, thank you all for all your love!_**

 ** _Enjoy!_**

* * *

 ** _Part Two:_**

The moment the meteor grabbed hold of Charlie, Matteusz learnt what it meant to feel his heart stop. Later he would wonder if that was how April was constantly feeling and then question how she ever functioned?

He had never felt more afraid than he had been at that precise moment. He had thought he knew fear. Fear of discovery when his father discovered he was gay. Fear of moving nto a new country without knowing its language. Fear of hostile aliens.

Fear of Charlie.

He had dealt with all of them pretty well.

But seeing his boyfriend about to disappear into a red-glowing meteor? Fear for Charlie? No. That, he couldn't deal with.

By the cries of the others, neither could they. So they all tried to hang on helplessly, but it was clear that whatever alien force was operating the rock prison was far stronger than the combined force of four teenagers.

His eyes found Charlie and in them he read the fear and love of his boyfriend but also his resignation. He understood that the Prince thought he was deserving this punishment. Was it because of what had been said in the past hour? Or was it a longer held feeling?

He would never know.

He wanted to say something. Anything. But he didn't know what. And it was too late anyway.

And then, a ray of blue light shattered the stone, resetting the time that had seemed to slow.

He gaped as Miss Quill entered the room looking battle worn.

The shock of her appearance rendered him numb as only one thought settled in his mind. Charlie was going to be fine. Miss Quill had saved him.

He would be able to explain. To apologize.

He would be able to learn what Charlie was feeling. Because he clearly had much to learn.

He said nothing as Ram, Tanya and April left, leaving him, Charlie and Miss Quill standing in the room. He took only one step forward, staying slightly behind the Rhodian, unsure of how his presence would be accepted now that the drama had settled.

Then, finally noticed the scared expression.

"How can you fire a gun?"

Matteusz frowned at the question. And then he understood. She wasn't supposed to be able to use any weapon. Even if the Prince was in mortal danger.

He watched helplessly as she threw a bloody bag at his boyfriend and they both understood what had happened.

Charlie had always said it was impossible but, somehow, Miss Quill had managed to free herself from the Ahn.

"What are you going to do now?"

The wet sound of the bag hitting the ground shook Matteusz from his wandering thoughts. It was a legitimate yet frightening question. He wasn't sure he wanted to know the answer.

He couldn't imagine any warrior forced into slavery for so long and who had helplessly watched their whole species die, react well to freedom.

Judging by her cold angry eyes, not reacting well was putting it midly.

In slavery she had done nothing to mask her hate for the Prince or her thirst for revenge against the Shadow Kin.

And now nothing stood between her and that.

He realized he had been wrong about fear all along. This, this was terrifying. So terrifying he felt stuck to the ground with it. Paralyzed. Only able to watch as events unfolded.

He watched as Charlie tried to make her talk, using his most authoritative voice, the one that always convinced Matteusz that his sweet boyfriend could be far more dangerous than he looked.

"I'm going to make you kill the Shadow Kin."

The sentence stood out in Matteusz' head. He had guessed that it would come to that but he had hoped to be wrong.

Charlie had made it quite clear he wouldn't use the Cabinet of Souls. That he wouldn't avenge genocide with genocide and lose his whole culture and his last hope.

 _Not even to save his boyfriend's life_ , his inner voice supplied.

He knew he was being unfair but the thought kept repeating itself at the most random moments. A constant questioning of: what if he wasn't enough for Charlie? What if he meant so little that Charlie could sacrifice him like that? Was that Charlie's real face? Ruthlessness?

That's what he was afraid of.

That he had been wrong all along.

"You think I'm afraid to die?" Charlie said as his former slave raised her gun towards him.

Matteusz almost didn't recognize his boyfriend's voice. Cold and unfeeling. Was he really not afraid?

Once again he asked himself: _Does he want to die? Does he think he deserves it?_

Matteusz wished he could stop everything and ask those questions. He wanted, needed, to know the answers. And if those were yes then he would to do everything he could to change them.

He thought back to all the time they had spent together and tried to see if he had missed signs of a death wish in his boyfriend.

He didn't think so.

And yet, how many times had he woken up in the middle of the night to find Charlie sitting in front of an opened Cabinet, staring at the countless souls there?

How many times had he caught him with moist eyes lost somewhere in memories?

Every time Charlie had managed to brush his concerns away with a smile and a kiss but how much of it was just a coping mechanism?

He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't notice Miss Quill's movement. In fact, he noticed she was pointing her gun at him only when he heard Charlie's panicked cry.

"Don't do that!"

He saw his boyfriend take a step forward and was reminded of the last time he had been held at gun point. He was getting tired of being used against Charlie. But this time he had a feeling it wouldn't end well.

"I told you. You have no orders to give me anymore."

Matteusz knew what was going to happen. He had accepted it last time. He wished there was a way to suspend time so he could tell his boyfriend that he loved him anyway, that this wasn't his fault and above all that he was proud of him for not using the Cabinets of Souls.

But he couldn't so he just closed his eyes in acceptance.

That's why he was even more surprised when he suddenly felt something collided against his side, making him fall down heavily, knocking the breathe out of him.

The thump and cry next to him forced his eyes open. They fell on Miss Quill's unreadable expression. She fled before he had the time to do anything else.

He turned back as his boyfriend's hand clumsily caught his side. His stomach dropped as Charlie's rapidly turned dark with blood.

"Charlie!" He cried out, panic rising so quick that he felt like he was suffocating with it.

He knelt next to the Prince, watching helplessly as he bled out, hands hovering, trying to make himself do something. Anything.

His mind was frozen.

What should he do?

Charlie was trying to push himself up. "Quill!"

It kicked Matteusz into reacting and he stopped his boyfriend. The answering pained groan made him wince.

"She ran out." He explained. He had to fight to find his words in English through the maze of panic he was still feeling. "Don't move. You need to hospital."

"No. No." Charlie was still weakly struggling, desperation clouding his eyes. "The Cabinet. We have to get it."

Matteusz shook his head as the Prince's eyes lost focus. He blindly reached to his side to find the shirt he had wrapped there. He took a deep strengthening breathe and pushed it firmly against the wound on Charlie's side. He had seen it done in almost every film he had ever watched and hoped it was the right thing to do in real life too.

It seemed to bring Charlie back to the current situation because his hands clenched against Matteusz forearms, warm and still wet with blood.

"Matteusz… Please. We… We have to… Get to it before her…"

Once again the Pole shook his head as tears filled his eyes. He wanted Charlie to concentrate on getting better. Not on some stupid object.

He berated himself again. Charlie was a prince and always would be. He had been taught time and time again that his people were more important him.

Even in death.

"Please."

Of course, he couldn't deny him this. He could never deny his boyfriend like that.

"Fine. Fine. I'll… I'll call the other."

There was no way they could deal with all this alone. He just hoped that who he thought of as their friends still were.

He reached for his thankfully close bag and began searching for his phone.

He saw Charlie's eyes close from the corner of his own and panic tightened its grip on his throat.

"Hey! Don't fall asleep on me!" He pressed on the wound as a reflex.

It made his boyfriends eyes open in a slit.

"I'm… Not…" The words were more mumbled than anything but it was enough for the moment.

He turned his attention back towards his phone. His fingers were shaking so much he struggled to just unlock it. He managed after three tries and went into the call history. He called the first number and prayed to a God he didn't even believe in to not be send to voicemail.

"What do you want?"

The relief at hearing his friend's abrupt answer made him lightheaded.

"Ram…" He managed to day in a breathless gasp. "Ram, thank God! You… You need to go to our house to pick up the Cabinet. Now."

"What? Why?"

"I don't have time to explain. Just do it!" Distantly, Matteusz thought that he had never talked to anyone like that, not even during the worst arguments with his father.

It seemed to shock the other boy into silence too.

"Okay. Right." He finally said.

"And beware of Quill. She… She just shot Charlie."

Just saying it felt surreal. He never thought he would ever say anything like that. When had his life become this? Why? It felt like he was a character in a movie or some TV show.

"What?" Ram spluttered. "How?"

"Please Ram. Later."

"Yes. Of course. I'm going. I'm calling the others. Where…"

But Matteusz had already stopped listening to him as he noticed Charlie's eyes were closed. How long had they been like that?

He roughly shook his boyfriend in desperation and stopped only when a groan answered him.

"Hey! Hey! Charlie! Charlie!"

He didn't even try to hide the fact that he was crying. Or that his throat was so tight it was difficult to talk. He swallowed with difficulty as he watched his boyfriend struggle to open his eyes. It made his heart throb.

"I… I love you… I love you… So much." His voice was barely a whisper but the words were clear and Matteusz had to bite back a sob.

He sounded like he was saying goodbye. He refused to accept this. But he couldn't say anything.

"I know. I know. I love you too."

His accent was so thick he wondered if Charlie could even understand him. He put his free hand on his boyfriend's head and gently stroked his hair just like his grandmother had done to him when he was sick.

"We have to get you to hospital." He tried to reason again.

"We can't… Alien."

Matteusz closed his eyes. That didn't matter to him! He just wanted Charlie to get better. He couldn't lose him. He didn't want to imagine a world without his alien prince! He didn't want to face it. He wasn't sure he could.

"You can't die!"

"It's… Okay… Matteusz."

His name sent a new spear of pain through his heart that stole his breathe.

"No… No, it's not… I need you!"

"You don't."

Matteusz wanted to argue. Really. But he felt the Prince go limp so he just bowed his head and let himself sob against his boyfriend's chest, cursing the unfairness of it all.

"Oh my God! Charlie!"

The cry made him jump up and he stared as Tanya ran to the both of them, kneeling down. She was crying too but he wasn't surprised. She was more caring than she let on.

"We have to get him to the hospital!" She told him as if he didn't know.

As if he wanted to be here, watching helplessly as the most important person of his life slowly died.

He shook his head in despair.

"He says we can't. Because he's an alien."

"Nonsense!" She cried out but he could already see that she knew they were right and was thinking of a solution. "My mum's a nurse. We can take him to her."

Matteusz' jaw almost dropped as a flicker of hope entered his heart.

"You sure?" He had to ask because he couldn't give himself false-hope.

Tanya answered with a nod. She was not one to lose.

"I'll call Ram and tell him to meet us outside." She immediately took charge. "You can handle Charlie?"

"Of course." It was nothing if it meant saving his boyfriend.

"Matteusz…"

The whisper almost made him jump out of his skin as he shifted to get a better grip on the Prince.

"Shut up love." He heard himself saying like he was some hero in a film. "You are not dying on me. You understand?"

He made sure to meet his boyfriend's eyes, making sure he heard what he wasn't saying. I love you. I can't let you die. I won't. You better not abandon me.

"Good." He said as if they had come to an agreement without any words. "Now brace yourself. You are going to be fine."

Matteusz thought he might be trying to reassure himself more than Charlie. He ignored it and bent down to haul his boyfriend up into his arms.

The Rhodian was heavier than he looked but Matteusz was determined. He clenched his teeth and made his way out of the ruined room.

Thankfully, he saw Ram's car waiting in front of the main doors.

He ignored his friend's shocked expression as he struggled into the back of the car while trying to keep pressure against the wound on Charlie's side.

"Hurry up Ram!" Tanya cried out from the front seat. Matteusz hadn't even noticed her.

"Yeah. Right. Yes."

The drive was a blur for Matteusz as he focused on his boyfriend, feeling his rasping breaths against his neck and the warm wetness of his blood on his hands.

He closed his eyes, wishing for Ram to go faster.

At some point, he heard Tanya call her mother.

"Mum, please. I promise I'll explain everything but we really need you!"

He couldn't hear the woman's answer but he could guess she wouldn't be happy. At all.

"Yes… Yes… We'll be there in five. Thanks."

She hung up, looking pale as she turned to Ram.

"She'll meet us at the back with a doctor."

"How angry was she?

Tanya shrugged.

"I guess I'm probably going to be grounded for the next twenty years or so."

The end of the ride was spent in tense silence and before long they arrived at the back entrance of the hospital where Tanya's mum worked. The door to Matteusz' side was opened and hands reached inside.

For a second, he had the instinct to hold onto his boyfriend. It was stupid and useless but his panicking mind didn't want to let Charlie go where he couldn't see him.

He forced himself to let go and it felt like his heart was being wrenched out as the doctor and Tanya's mum ran inside the building.

He sat there shell-shocked, staring unseeingly at the automatic doors, until Tanya appeared in front of him. She placed her hands on his shoulder.

"Come on Matteusz. We'll go to the waiting room."

He found himself nodding and followed her like an automaton. He was disconnected from reality, like he wasn't there anymore, like his whole self had stopped existing until he received news of Charlie.

She led him into a thankfully empty room with plastic chairs and greenish walls. A window let sunshine in, illuminating the room with warmth.

Matteusz still felt frozen in fear and uncertainty. He shivered.

"I'm… I'm going to find us some tea." Tanya announced. It was clear she was uncomfortable but Matteusz didn't have the strength to care anymore.

He bowed his head and stared at his hands, for the first time noticing the red blood on them. He had to swallow hard against the rising sickness. There was so much blood.

What would he do if Charlie died?

His fists clenched. He forced the question away. He wouldn't think about it. He just wouldn't. Charlie was going to be fine.

He had too.

Tanya came back and offered him a steaming cup.

He accepted it without a word, wrapping his cold hands against it.

"Don't worry. My mum and the doctor will save him." She encouraged, squeezing his shoulder again before sitting down on a nearby chair.

That made Matteusz look at her.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm sitting down." She answered like he was a particularly dull child asking stupid questions.

"Why?"

She stared at him for a few seconds, eyebrow raised.

"You don't expect me to just leave you here alone, do you?"

Heat rose in his cheeks. It's exactly what he had been thinking. In fact, after their detention he hadn't really thought any of them cared much about each other anymore.

"Well you're wrong." She carried on. "He… He saved us. And… You're my friend. Both of you are."

He didn't know how to answer that. He was touched.

"Thank you." He final said, his voice rough with unshed tears.

* * *

It took almost two hours for Tanya's mum to come back and since then Ram had come back with April in tow. Matteusz had remembered that he was supposed to have the Cabinet of Souls and had asked about it but Ram had flat out refused to say where it was, claiming it was safe and would stay that way as long as they didn't know where it was.

It sounded oddly logical so Matteusz had let it rest like that. And anyway, he had more important things to worry about. Like his boyfriend. Whose condition was still unknown.

The more minutes passed the more worried he became. His leg kept bouncing up and down and more than once he found himself praying. His father would be proud. Or maybe not as he was praying for his boyfriend's life.

"Matteusz?" The unfamiliar voice made him jerk and he scrambled up on unfeeling legs.

He tried to deceiver Tanya's mum expression. It felt like he had stopped breathing.

"You can come and see Charlie if you want."

The relief at the news was so intense that he stumbled. He hurried to follow her.

"How is he? Is he alright?" He asked, struggling to find the correct words.

The woman nodded.

"He's still unconscious but he should be fine. He needs rest."

They had arrived in front of a door and she opened it, holding it open for him.

He felt scared to go in. He still vividly remembered the last time he had entered a hospital room to find his grandmother hooked up to so many tubes that he had barely recognized her.

He felt a hand on his elbow.

"Go on dear. Don't worry."

She sounded so sure that he believed her and entered.

Charlie was lying on a typical hospital bed, eyes closed and skin pale. Matteusz almost ran to him, reaching for his left hand to find it a bit cooler than usual but still warm. He observed the rest of his boyfriend, noticing the IV in his other hand and the cables stuck to his chest.

"I'll leave you alone. Don't hesitate to call if you need any help."

Matteusz only nodded, unable to look away from the most important person in his life, letting himself bask in the knowledge that the last Rhodian was going to be fine.

He found a nearby chair and sat down, never letting go of Charlie's hand. He knew that his boyfriend hated it when they weren't touching in some way. Especially when they slept.

He folded his arms around Charlie's and rested his head on them, enjoying the smell of his boyfriend's skin and the feel of his moving chest.

He fell asleep without noticing it.

* * *

Two more days passed and Charlie was still unconscious. Tanya's mum kept saying it was normal but Matteusz had a hard time believing her anymore.

He had barely left the room, flat out refusing any suggestion of going to get some sleep. He wouldn't leave his boyfriend alone.

He spent most of his time sitting on his chair rubbing Charlie's hand or reading to him, hoping it would make the Prince wake up. Or, at least, that it would let him know that he wasn't alone. That he wasn't lost.

He was sitting with his head pillowed next to Charlie's uninjured side when he felt the Prince shift next to him with a soft exhale.

He jerked up, letting go of Charlie's hand.

"Charlie?" He asked as the heart monitor registered an increased heartrate. "Charlie, it's okay. I'm here. I'm here."

He placed one hand on the side of his boyfriend's head, the other reached to gently stroke his hair in a familiar movement.

"Come on Charlie, wake up for me." He pleaded with a sigh, his heart beating too fast and his eyes stinging with tears. "Please Charlie… I need you."

He let his head fall against the Prince's neck when no answer came.

He had been so sure that he would wake this time.

The soft call of his name made him freeze. Had he imagined it?

He jerked up to see his boyfriend's eyes open. He stared for a long time before grinning. He began rambling without even noticing it, relief making his accent thick and nearly incomprehensible. He didn't care. Charlie was awake. He was alright. He was alive.

He snapped his mouth shut when he felt the Prince's hand on his wrist. He looked in his boyfriend's eyes, trying to convey all the love he felt in that one look.

He watched as Charlie shifted on his bed.

"You shouldn't…" He tried to say before being interrupted.

"Come here."

The voice was still low and raspy but the command was clear. Yet Matteusz hesitated. He looked at the room's door. He should inform the nurses that their patient was awake. They would want to examine him.

He felt a tug on his wrist and sighed quietly, shoulders sagging. Yes, he should call the nurses. But he needed to be close to his boyfriend more. He carefully lay down on the bed and didn't resist when Charlie made him hug him. He closed his eyes and kissed his boyfriend's slightly dirty hair.

He had missed that. The feeling of love and proximity with another being.

The feeling of security and home.

"Matteusz?"

The name broke the silence. The Pole answered with a hum.

"The Cabinet…"

Of course, Charlie would be worried about his people's souls. Matteusz wanted to kick himself for not thinking of that sooner.

"Ram got it before coming to take us to the hospital." He explained. "He's hidden it but wouldn't tell me where."

"Quill?"

Matteusz tensed, his mind flashing back to the last time he had seen her. Hatred burned in his heart.

"We haven't seen her since."

He expected more questions but none came. He let himself relax again, closing his eyes and enjoying the feeling of his boyfriend in his arms.

For some time, he had thought that he would lose Charlie and it had been the most terrible thing he had ever felt. He never wanted to feel like that again.

It made him realize that his fear of Charlie and what the Prince could do if he so wished was nothing compared to his fear for Charlie, his fear of losing the most important person in his life. The one that had changed him beyond recognition. For the best.

For the first time in days, he fell asleep with a smile on his face.

* * *

 ** _Aaaand that's is! Don't hesitate to tell me what you thought of this in a review or a PM (or if you just want to talk about this Finale...)_**


End file.
